Clemson “a match made in heaven” for elite commit

Christian Bentancur can't wait to get to Clemson after a commitment earlier this year.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Sat Feb 18 07:00:13 GMT-04:00 2023

The Tigers have a talented group of tight ends with Jake Briningstool headlining those on campus, and some future talent coming to Clemson. Christian Bentancur is one of the best tight ends in the country, and he’s committed to Clemson as part of the Tigers’ 2024 recruiting class.

The four-star tight end is coming from Marian Central Catholic High School in Woodstock, Illinois. He received a total of 37 offers, including locally from the University of Illinois, as well as from some ACC rivals such as Duke, Florida State and Syracuse, and some playoff teams from this past season with Michigan and Ohio State. Despite making visits to Michigan State and Texas A&M, the family culture created by head coach Dabo Swinney is what led Bentancur to decide on Clemson back in mid-January. His coach at Marian Central Catholic, Liam Kirwan, explained that the family culture was something Bentancur was really striving for.

“He wanted to find a family and a program that cared about him as more than just a football player and I think that’s where you see that at Clemson with Coach Swinney,” Kirwan said. “No. 1 for him was finding a family and program and No. 2 was finding a place that you know, offensively, fits his game and that can compete on a national stage and hopefully one day, following the footsteps of alumni like … where they’re playing in the NFL.”

Unfortunately, Bentancur won’t be coming to Clemson in time to play basketball against defensive tackle, Ruke Orhorhoro who claims to be an amazing basketball player. But, perhaps then Bentancur could take Orhorhoro’s place as the top basketball player on the football team as he is a dual-athlete who once aspired to play in the NBA.

Still, Clemson's recent notoriety as a prominent school for tight ends is something that should be bolstered by the addition of Bentancur. He was recruited by assistant coach and tight ends coach, Kyle Richardson. The addition of new offensive coordinator Garrett Riley also will fit into his game well, as described by Coach Kirwan.

“Coach Richardson is a great coach. Just getting to know him throughout the recruiting process, he’s a fantastic guy to get to know and a great coach and you look at Coach Swinney, how he runs his program, I think regardless of what position Christian was, I think he’s going into a program that’s a total program, that’s a family, that has a culture,” Kirwain said. “It has a plan for him, and I think that’s the biggest thing is they’re investing in Christian as a person and not every college football program does that and I think when you have a staff like that, whatever position you play, you’re going to be successful at. And on top of that, tight ends coming out of Clemson and the offensive running, with Coach Riley coming in, it will suit Christian’s game well too. I think it’s a match made in heaven for Christian, just how the program’s ran as well as the offense.”

Clemson will have some fierce competition at the position, something that Bentancur is looking forward to. Having such a talented group of players in one position will allow him to build as a player and learn from some of the best tight ends in the country, which is essential as someone who wants to go into the NFL.

“It’s going to be real good competition each day, each of us pushing each other to get better. They, obviously, have proven to use their tight ends and excel their tight ends, so it’s really fun to watch and I can’t wait to get there,” Bentancur said. “I’m trying to have as successful of a career as I can at Clemson. Hopefully, that comes with a lot of receiving yards and a lot of receptions, touchdowns, and all that stuff.”